During the past two weeks, the COVID-19 pandemic has intensified and expanded in terms of its global reach, with huge impacts on public health and unprecedented shocks to economies and labour markets. It is the worst global crisis since the Second World War.

Since the ILO’s preliminary assessment of 18 March, global COVID-19 infections have risen more than six-fold and stood at 1,030,628 on 3 April 2020; an additional 47,600 people have lost their lives, bringing the total number of deceased to 54,137.1. Many countries have initiated social distancing policies to slow the virus’s spread, with the aim of avoiding catastrophic outcomes for national health systems and minimizing lives lost.